Countdown to Cider Summit Seattle!

July 24, 2015March 29, 2017 cidersays Cider Summit, event, local cider, cider event, cider summit, cider summit seattle, cider tasting, hard cider, port townsend, seattle, summer cider day

7 weeks left until Cider Summit Seattle (Friday & Saturday September 11 & 12, 2015! I haven’t been before, so am very excited for Seattle’s biggest cider event of the year. This is part of Washington Cider Week (Sept 10-20), so stay tuned for more Cider Week event notifications as I read of them (100 separate events are expected, so clear your calendar!).

And, speaking of cider events, Summer Cider Day 2015 is coming up (Saturday August 8, 2015, in Port Townsend WA). I unfortunately won’t be able to make it, but apparently it is a great event for getting face-to-face time with some of the 17 Northwest cidermakers and cidery representatives that are expected to be there. Although cidery folks will be on hand for Cider Summit, there is a much larger turnout. Plus, there is a bottle shop.

Press release for Cider Summit Seattle:

Cider Summit Seattle Celebrates 6 Years!
Region’s Largest Cider Festival Returns to South Lake Union

July 21, 2015 – SBS Imports and the Seattle Beer Collective are pleased to announce the return of the Cider Summit Festival to Seattle, WA. The sixth annual event will be Friday, September 11th from 3p-8p and Saturday, September 12th from 12n-6p. Cider Summit will once again be at The South Lake Union Discovery Center near Westlake & Denny in downtown Seattle. The event is presented by Whole Foods Market.

This will be the 16th Cider Summit produced by SBS & Seattle Beer Collective, having launched the concept in Seattle in September 2010 and expanding to Portland, Chicago, and San Francisco. Each event features 150+ elegantly crafted ciders from producers in Washington, Oregon, British Columbia, California, Michigan, New Hampshire, England, France, Spain and others.

“We’ve been very pleased with the growth of our event in Seattle,” noted SBC’s Ian Roberts. “We believe we have added some nice features and a unique cider selection that will help us reach an even wider audience of cider enthusiasts.”

The owners and cidermakers will be on hand to inform and guide guests through the samplings which will be available in 4-ounce tasting portions. In addition to the superb range of ciders, the event will feature live music, specially paired food selections from Whole Foods Market, Capitol Cider and others. A returning popular feature is the Cider Summit “dog lounge” water station benefitting Seattle Humane. New for 2015 is a Cider Cocktail Lounge hosted by CiderCraft Magazine and Capitol Cider, with a special appearance from author Darlene Hayes.

“We believe we’ve created a unique event,” added event co-founder Alan Shapiro of SBS Imports. “We have found a great home in the South Lake Union neighborhood and we expect a terrific range of ciders. Interest in artisanal cider is exploding right now, and this event is the premier sampling opportunity for both the cider enthusiast and cider curious.”

Tickets are $30 in advance and $35 (cash only) at the door and are available online via Stranger tickets, all Seattle Metro Area Whole Foods Market locations, Capitol Cider, Umpqua Bank South Lake Union and selected bottle shops. Admission includes a souvenir glass and 8 tasting tickets. Additional tasting tickets will be available for sale onsite at $2 per ticket. Re-admission will be allowed at any time with event wristband and tasting glass. The event is 21 and over only. Dogs of all ages will be allowed on event grounds.

A special VIP ticket is available for $40. This ticket includes 4 additional tasting tickets and exclusive early admission on Friday from 2p-3p. Only 200 of these tickets are available – exclusively online via the event website. Cider Summit benefits Northwest Cider Association, The Institute for Myeloma & Bone Cancer Research, and Seattle Humane.

Cider Summit is presented by Whole Foods Market. Supporting sponsors include Capitol Cider, Oregon Fruit Products Company, Umpqua Bank, Click Wholesale Distributing, Ryan’s Juice, with media support from The Stranger, KEXP, and Cidercraft Magazine.

For more information contact:
Alan Shapiro – SBS Imports
206.527.4191
alanmshapiro@sbs-imports.com

Do You Know How Many Cider Bars there are in the U.S.?

July 23, 2015November 28, 2015 cidersays misc, news bar, Bushwacker, Capitol Cider, cider, cider bar, hard cider, McMenamin's, Portland Cider House, Schilling Cider House, Scrumpy's Hard Cider Bar, The Northman, Upcider, Urban Orchard, Wassail

Have you ever been to a cider bar? Or did you not know they even exist? Yes, they do–an entire bar devoted to hard cider! Most have an extensive tap selection. Some serve food. Some have a bottle shop for you to have a bottled cider there or one to take home. Some also serve other types of alcoholic beverages. We are lucky enough to have two in the Seattle area, but I was curious how prevalent they are in the U.S. I was able to find 11. Are there any others? Do you have any information to share about any of them?

My definitions for inclusion were cider-focused bar/pub type establishments (although some places also have other beverages) that offer cider from more than one cidery (ie. a tap room for a single cider company was not included, but it was if they also offer ciders from other cideries). Many cideries have great tap rooms that are more like a bar than a tasting room though. Note that “The Northman” is also planned in Chicago IL but hasn’t opened yet.

A “cider bar” is quite a new trend, as all of these opened in the last few years as far as I know (although apparently Ace gets credit for the first modern cider bar, which opened in 1999 but closed in 2010; they have a tap room now though).

Capitol Cider (Seattle WA)
20 cider taps
250+ bottles (list available online)
beer, wine, & cocktails also available
full gluten free kitchen

Schilling Cider House (Seattle WA)
32 cider taps (2 Nitro)
250+ bottles
no food (allowed to bring in outside food)
also carries their own line of ciders

Bushwhacker Cider (Portland OR, Woodlawn location)
14 cider taps
bottles available
full kitchen
also carries their own line of ciders

Bushwhacker Cider (Portland OR, Brooklyn location)
8 cider taps
350+ bottles
limited food menu
also carries their own line of ciders

Portland Cider House (Portland OR)
28 cider taps
no food (allowed to bring in outside food)
also carries their own line of ciders

McMenamin’s Tavern & Pool (part of their Portland OR location)
6 cider taps
full restaurant
also carries their own line of ciders (Edgefield)

Upcider (San Francisco CA)
cider on tap & bottled
limited food menu

Scrumpy’s Hard Cider Bar (Fort Collins CO)
18 cider taps
limited food menu
also carries their own line of ciders

Urban Orchard (Asheville NC)
7 cider taps
limited food menu
beer & wine also available
also carries their own line of ciders

Wassail (New York City NY)
13 cider taps
full restaurant (vegetarian)
wine, beer, & cocktails also available

Finger Lakes Cider House (Interlaken NY)
has cider from five local cideries (Good Life, Black Diamond, Eve’s, Redbyrd, & South Hill)
23 cider taps
limited food menu

It looks like the Schilling CIder House wins for the most number of cider taps, at 32! Check out my review.

Schilling Cider House – Cider Tasting Notes

July 22, 2015August 22, 2015 cidersays 101 Ciderhouse, Elemental, Finnriver, local, Locust, Moonlight Meadery, Portland Cider, Rev Nat's, review, Schilling, Viuda de Angelon Sidra, Wandering Aengus, Whitewood cider, cider house, cider review, cider tasting, Fremont, hard cider, review, Schilling, Schilling Cider House, seattle

This is Part 2 of a trip report on the Schilling Cider House, covering the 18 ciders I tasted (of the 32 on tap). Pretty impressive, right? See Part 1 here, which covered the Cider House itself. I tried to take a photo of each cider, but some of them didn’t turn out, so I’ve only included photos of some of the ciders with interesting hues. Thankfully though, I took notes! I had two flights of six ciders (3oz) each, and six tastes from our bartender.

Schilling’s Ciders

Chaider, 6.5% ABV, Semi-Sweet:
This is one of their most popular ciders, and is available bottled (22oz) in the winter. It smelled of cinnamon and definitely had a Chai tea-like taste. Definitely not my thing, but it was my husband’s favorite taste of the day.

Chaider (Nitro), 6.5% ABV, Semi-Sweet:
This is the same cider as above except on Nitro, which added some additional smoothness. It was quite foamy from the tap from the nitrogenation, and needed a couple minutes to calm down.

Ginger, 6.5% ABV, Semi-Dry (noted Semi-Sweet):
I’m not a ginger fan, but this was handed to me, so I tried it! It had a much milder initial ginger taste than smell, but had more of a ginger aftertaste. I think Ginger fans would really like this one. Its not too overwhelming with Ginger.

Hopped, 6.5% ABV, Semi-Dry:
Hopped ciders aren’t my thing, but my husband wanted this, and thought it was pretty decent. I had one sip and it is definitely hoppy, but way less than Reverend Nat’s Envy / Hopland #5. Otherwise I can’t really comment on it.

Sriracha Lime, 6.7% ABV, Semi-Dry (noted Dry):
This cider seemed intriguing, I like Sriracha & Lime, and there was some chatter online of folks liking it, so why not? It definitely smelled of Sriracha & Lime, but all I picked up in the taste was the Sriracha (no Lime). Definitely spicy! I don’t think I like spicy ciders. I can tolerate spicy food, but the spiciness seemed to overwhelm the cider here. I think this would have been better to do with a sweet citrus/lime cider with only a hint of Sriracha.

(I’ve also previously tried Schilling Oak Aged, Gold, & Grapefruit)

Other Ciders

101 Ciderhouse Cactus Red, 6.5% ABV, Los Angeles CA, Dry:
I tried this on a whim as it sounded unique/odd. I picked up a citrus scent and it had a lovely pink color, similar to grapefruit juice. It was definitely dry, and very very tart! I unfortunately couldn’t take more than two sips of this one.

Elemental Cherry, 6.5% ABV, Woodinville WA, Semi-Dry:
Pretty rosé color. Smelled like cherries. However, I barely picked up any cherry flavor when tasting it. Folks who like drier ciders but want a fruity cider may like this, as many fruit infused ciders tend to be sweeter.

Finnriver Habenero, 6.9% ABV, Chimacum WA, Semi-Sweet:
Another cider handed to me from the bartender, who was trying it for the first time as they just tapped it. It didn’t smell spicy, but it was! The bite hit my sinuses about 10 seconds after drinking it. Again, the spice was overwhelming. I wasn’t a fan, but my husband didn’t mind it.

Finnriver Lavender Black Currant (Nitro), 6.5% ABV, Chimacum WA, Sweet:
Very dark & vibrant hue. Extra smooth taste (from the nitrogenation). I’ve tried their Black Currant flavor, and I honestly couldn’t pick up the added Lavender in this one. However, my husband did. In addition to the black current, I picked up some cherry notes. This was much better than the bottled Black Currant I had of their’s (which was also quite good). I imagine tap + Nitro did it. Excellent!

Finnriver Oak & Apple, 6.5% ABV, Chimacum WA, Semi-Dry:
The bartender said this was very similar to Schilling’s Oak Aged (which was surprisingly absent from the tap list). I’m a huge fan of barrel aged ciders, so I was anxious to try it. This is a milder barrel aged cider, and quite tasty. I think I give the slight edge to Schilling’s Oak Aged though. And, overall, my favorite barrel aged ciders so far are Woodchuck Winter Chill (which also has some vanilla flavor) and Thistly Cross Whisky Cask (very smooth), both of which are significantly sweeter than Schilling’s & Finnriver’s oak aged selections, but I do enjoy Schilling Oak Aged. Yum!

Locust Sweet & Dark Cherry, 6.5% ABV, Woodinville WA, Semi-Sweet:
For a cherry cider, I was expecting more flavor, but it was quite mild, and there was little cherry scent or flavor. This has a sweeter start and more tart finish. This was pretty similar to the Elemental Cherry (which also had a mild cherry flavor), except a bit sweeter.

Moonlight Meadery How do you Like them Little Apples?, 6.0% ABV, Londonderry NH, Sweet:
Hard cider blended with honey & brown sugar, fermented, then barrel aged (draft only release). Honey smell (duh). Quite sweet. Very smooth. Tastes like it would be a higher ABV than it is (but I wouldn’t call the taste boozy). I wouldn’t have guessed it was barrel aged. Awesome!

Portland Cider Passion Fruit, 6.5% ABV, Portland OR, Semi-Sweet:
I was excited to try this one. The passion fruit smell was amazing! However, the passion fruit taste was quite mild, and it had a bit of a tart & bitter finish, which I wasn’t expecting. It is however a refreshing and easy-drinking cider.

Portland Cider Pearfect Perry, 6.5% ABV, Portland OR, Semi-Dry (noted Semi-Sweet):
This was a very mild Perry; I could barely pick up any pear flavor. It was however pretty tasty and smooth.

Reverend Nat’s Newtown Pippin, 6.9% ABV, Portland OR, Semi-Dry:
One of Rev Nat’s regular release ciders. This was a mild & crisp cider which I found to have a fairly bitter finish. Pretty boring for my tastes.

Viuda de Angelon Sidra Brut, 6.5% ABV, Spain, Dry:
A refreshing & smooth Spanish cider. I can’t really put the flavor into words, but it is one of those ciders which has a flavor profile which seems sweeter than it really is. It was Schilling’s most expensive offering by the way, at $11/pint, but only $2 for a 3oz taste. This makes me want to try more Spanish ciders!

Wandering Aengus Wanderlust, 6.5%, Salem OR, Dry (noted Semi-Dry):
Fairly plain, and I found it tart & bitter. Taste profile was in-line with the two Wandering Aengus and two Anthem (also made by them) ciders I’ve tried. Also fairly boring for my tastes.

Whitewood Summer Switchel, 4.6% ABV, Olympia WA, Semi-Sweet:
This is a mild & refreshing cider with a hint of ginger. The bartender said he picks up almost a salty flavor, which after hearing that, I agreed somewhat.

Photos

101 Ciderhouse Cactus Red

Elemental Cherry

Finnriver Lavender Black Currant

Locust Cherry

Moonlight Meadery How do you like them Little Apples

Closing Notes

My favorites from this tasting were the Moonlight Meadery “How do you Like them Little Apples?”, Finnriver Oak & Apple, Finnriver Lavender Black Currant, and Viuda de Angelon Sidra Brut. Quite an interesting combination, right?

I also learned that in addition to hopped, ginger, and overly dry ciders, I definitely don’t like spicy ciders!

I look forward to returning to the Schilling Cider House to try more ciders, as their selections change all the time. Stay tuned for reviews of the five ciders I picked up from their bottle shop (shown in Part 1).

Schilling Cider House Trip Report

July 21, 2015July 22, 2015 cidersays local, Schilling cider, cider house, cider tasting, ciderhouse, Fremont, hard apple cider, hard cider, Schilling, seattle

The Schilling Cider House in Fremont (Seattle). In one word, awesome! A cider enthusiast’s paradise. 32 ciders on tap and a huge unique selection of bottled ciders. Only craft cider to be found here, no commercial stuff. They opened September 2014. Two of the taps are Nitro (nitrogenated, which adds some additional smoothness) and they also have a Randall setup (although it didn’t appear they were infusing anything that day, as no offerings were mentioned when we asked to have our suspicions confirmed). This will be a two part review, with this part covering the cider house, and a second part with tasting notes on the 18! ciders I tried. Considering I had either already tried or wasn’t interested in the remaining ciders, I think that is mildly impressive.

Thankfully I didn’t have to get too inebriated when trying the 18 ciders, as I had 12 3oz+ samplers and 6 small tastes over a couple hours, and my husband helped sip on them a bit too (although he was gracious enough to be my DD).

I apologize in advance on the quality of the photos; I am a horrible photographer and clearly need to work on that for cider blog purposes! Click to biggify the photos by the way.

They have cider available in:
– 3oz sampler for $2 each (which most folks get in a flight/tray of six)
– pint (priced individually by the cider, $5-$11 when I was there)
– growler (also priced individually by cider, and they can only do this for ciders under 7% by law, which is the vast majority of them)

Therefore the sampler size can be a good deal for some of their more expensive ciders which cost double the price of something else.

My husband and I checked out the Schilling Cider House on a Saturday, early afternoon. My husband was even nice enough to grab us some take out from a Thai place down the street (Zap Verr) during our visit. It wasn’t anything special, but highly convenient, as Schilling does not offer any food (but do allow folks to bring food in or have it delivered). I think they would do well to sell some snacks, even some chips or something easy to stock, as its hard to stay too long at a place that has alcohol but no food, even with their open food policy.

The Schilling Cider House is a great hang out spot. They even have a stack of games available. There are about six stools at the bar and the remainder are at four long tables. The decor is all cider and all Schilling. The empty kegs they keep around add a nice touch. Empty kegs were even to be found in the restroom! I was the cider geek who had to come right back to the restroom after I grabbed my phone, so I could take photos…

I was bummed to see that I missed Reverend Nat’s The Passion, as I’ve been wanting to try that.

I also missed Schilling’s own Berry cider, only available at their cider house. Although I’ll get more into the actual ciders in the second installment, I can say that I was surprised Schilling didn’t offer all their ciders on tap at their own cider house! There were eight Schilling ciders though, and a handful were ciderhouse-only (or out of season). They were at least missing their Berry, Spiced, and Oak Aged (a cider I really like and my favorite cider of their’s). Serving ciders other than their own is quite unique for a ciderhouse, but a really great idea.

However, there were definitely many cider options, from dry to sweet, for any taste. Their chalk board menu is color-coded by sweetness (dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet, and sweet), and for the most part I agreed with their classifications. The taps are numbered, and you can take a business card size card and write down your selections. They definitely change often, as they switched out two taps during our visit! Their Facebook page can give you an idea of what is available, but I found it wasn’t quite up to date.

Their bottle shop is extensive (250+ selections), chock full of both local craft ciders and interesting imports. They also allow folks to buy & open a bottle there to drink, no corkage fee, although I’m not sure why you would with 32 ciders on tap! I’m surprised they didn’t have some bottled beer & soda selections, but maybe I missed them (I did however see a cold canned coffee selection). All bottles are chilled, in three triple door glass-front fridges (a very smart move on their part). There were many selections I hadn’t seen anywhere else.

I picked up five varieties (reviews forthcoming of course!). Left to right in photo below: MillStone Cellars Cobbler (Monkton MD), Aspall English Imperial Cider (Suffolk England), Attila Scourge of God (Ellensburg WA), Freyeisen Apfelwein (Frankfurt Germany), and Dragon’s Head Wild Fermented Cider (Vashon Island WA).

I could have spent an hour just reading all the bottle labels and Googling them and such, but my husband was patient enough, so I made some semi-quick (for me) selections of ciders I hadn’t seen before. They also offer some merchandise, such as t-shirts, and of course, growlers ($5 + cider fill cost).

However, of course, the main attraction is the cider itself. From what I overheard there seemed to be a mix of new & old cider lovers. We sat next to a young woman who was a tourist from New York who found them just walking by. And there was an older lady buying growlers of cider for a get together. I was surprised how busy it got as the afternoon went on (we were there about 1:30 to 3:30 pm), as I had expected it to be rather dead until the evening, but it was a weekend. Luckily we got there not too long after they opened (at noon) and were able to get two seats at the bar.

They have some great bartenders, and ours was very helpful! He kept passing us tastes of ciders, asking us what we thought. Some of them were things I wouldn’t have otherwise even ordered a taster of. I never turn down cider! I did unfortunately pushed some away we found weren’t to our taste though. They have several of what could be referred to as “novelty” ciders. Fun for a taste but I’d be shocked if someone ordered a pint.

[Yes, this is almost the entire place! And yes, this is a horrible photo. But I guess I don’t have to worry about people’s privacy since I’m showing their faces lol.]

Due to the time of our visit, I can’t comment on the nighttime scene here, how busy they get in the evening, etc. I imagine the place fills up though, as it is pretty small tasting room (it seats around 50 people). The bartender commented they are plenty busy on weekdays too. If you want to chat up the bartender, secure a seat at the bar, and increase your chances of getting passed tasters of stuff the bartender likes, I’d recommend getting here when they open (I imagine mentioning I’m a blogger could have helped too). If you want a more vibrant atmosphere, then later in the day may be a better idea.

In case you are curious, I much preferred Schilling to Capitol Cider, which just wasn’t my scene. Capitol Cider does however get a nod to having a full (gluten free) kitchen.

We spotted some cool swag (coasters & stickers) below the bar as we were being rung up, and ask and thou shall receive!

[Maybe they had a Thistly Cross tasting at some point? It also looks like Thistly Cross has three varieties I haven’t found here: Elderflower, Strawberry, & Original. I’ve had the Whisky Cask (one of my favorites) and Traditional (very similar to Whisky Cask), and am not a fan of ginger so I haven’t tried that one.]

The Schilling Cider House is open noon-11pm seven days a week. 21+ only, but they do appear to be dog friendly (a patron next to us had a cute & well behaved pitt bull). I highly recommend it and look forward to returning!

Stay tuned for Schilling Cider House review Part 2, with tasting notes on all 18 ciders I tried!
Update: Part 2 covering the 18 ciders I tasted is now available!

Have you been to the Schilling Cider House, or any other cider bar? What did you think?

Spotlight on Washington Cideries

July 19, 2015July 20, 2015 cidersays local cider, cideries, cidery, hard apple cider, hard cider, WA, WA cider, washington, washington cider

It took some digging, but here is an attempt at a current list of all cideries in Washington state and a bit of info on each. We sure have quite the cider region here! I found quite a few I hadn’t heard of (some are very small, such as one cider variety at a winery). Looks like I have plenty of new ciders to try! Let me know if I missed any or there is any mis-information.

Alpenfire Cider (Port Townsend) – Organic, numerous varieties, tasting room
Attila Hard Apple Cider (Ellensberg) – two varieties
Chelan Gold / Lake Chelan Hard Cider (Lake Chelan) – one variety
Cockrell Hard Ciders (Puyallup) – three varieties
Core Hero Hard Cider (Edmonds) – two varieties
Country Elegance at Hard Cider Shed (Cashmere) – four varieties, tasting room
D’s Wicked Cider (Kennewick) – two varieties
Dragon’s Head Cider (Vashon Island) – four varieties, tasting room
Eaglemount Wine & Cider (Port Townsend) – numerous varieties, mead & wine too, tasting room, online store
Elemental Hard Cider (Woodinville) – four varieties, tasting room
Finnriver Farm & Cidery (Chimacum) – numerous varieties, fruit wines & farm venue too, tasting room, online store
Grizzly Ciderworks (Woodinville) – four varieties, tasting room
Honey Moon Mead & Cider (Bellingham) – one variety (CiderHead), tasting room
Irvine’s Vintage Cider at Vashon Winery (Vashon Island) – one variety, tasting room, online store
Jester & Judge Cider Co. (Stevenson) – three varieties
Liberty Ciderworks (Spokane) – numerous varieties, tasting room
Locust Cider (Woodinville) – four varieties, tasting room
Methow Valley Ciderhouse (Winthrop) – four varieties, tasting room
Nashi Orchards (Vashon Island) – numerous varieties, tasting room
Neigel Vintners (NV) Cider (East Wenatchee) – five varieties
Number 6 Cider (Seattle) – numerousvarieties, tasting room
One Tree Hard Cider (Spokane) – five varieties
Orondo Ciderworks (Orando) – three varieties, tasting room
Rockridge Orchard & Cidery (Enumclaw) – numerous varieties, tasting room (including other ciders)
Schilling Cider Co. (Seattle) – numerous varieties, tasting room (including other ciders)
Seattle Cider Co. (Seattle) – numerous varieties, tasting room
Sixknot Cider (Twisp) – numerous varieties
Snowdrift Cider Co. (East Wenatchee) – numerous varieties, tasting room
Spire Mountain, part of Fish Brewing (Olympia) – four varieties, tasting room (Brew Pub)
Three Knees (Snohomish) – four varieties, tasting room in works
Tieton Cider (and Rambling Route) (Tieton) – numerous varieties, tasting room
Twilight Cider Works (Spokane) – numerous varieties, tasting room
Twin Peaks, from Phillippi Fruit (Wenatchee) – three varieties, tasting room
Westcott Bay Cider (San Juan Island) – three varieties, tasting room, online store
Whiskey Barrel Cider Co. (Pullman) – numerous varieties, tasting room
Whitewood Cider Co. (Olympia) – numerous varieties, tasting room, online store

Sources: Cyder Market, Northwest Cider

Cider Says Weekly Preview

July 19, 2015July 25, 2015 cidersays preview blog, cider, cider review, cider tasting, eaglemount, hard cider, Schilling, washington

What posts to expect in the upcoming week at Cider Says:

Schilling Cider House Trip Report
Schilling Cider House – Cider Tasting Notes
Spotlight on Washington Cideries
~~Eaglemount Quince cider review~~
added: Do You Know How Many Cider Bars there are in the U.S.?
added: Countdown to Cider Summit Seattle!
added: Sea Cider Prohibition / Rumrunner review

Stay tuned, and remember to follow us on Facebook or e-mail (sidebar on right, or at bottom of page on mobile devices) or follow on WordPress (top left bar) to be notified of new posts here at Cider Says. Have a great week!

Liberty Ciderworks Manchurian Crabapple Single Varietal

July 18, 2015July 20, 2015 cidersays Liberty, review apple cider, cider, cider review, crabapple, hard apple cider, hard cider, hard cider review, liberty, Manchurian Crabapple, port, review, single varietal, Spokane

Review of Manchurian Crabapple Single Varietal by Liberty Ciderworks. This is my first time trying any of their ciders, and is my first time trying a Single Varietal cider as far as I know (most ciders use a blend of apple varieties).

Cider: Manchurian Crabapple Single Varietal
Cidery: Liberty Ciderworks
Cidery Location: Spokane WA
ABV: 12.5%
How Supplied: 375 ml tall clear glass bottle
Availability: Fairly limited. Per the cidery they currently self-distribute to Spokane and Seattle. In Seattle, they can at least be found at Capitol Cider, Schilling Cider House, Full Throttle Bottles & Special Brews & other bottle shops which specialize in local craft cider, and Total Wine.

Cider Description on Bottle: No larger than a cherry, the Manchurian Crabapple packs a huge flavor punch. Ready for one of the most full-bodied, intensely-flavored ciders you’ll ever encounter? This semi-sweet, single-varietal cider is for you. Enjoy on its own as a digestif, with soft artisan cheeses, or with rich, creamy desserts. Still (non-carbonated).

Additional Information from Rick Hastings, co-founder of Liberty Ciderworks (per my e-mail request): Thanks for your interest in the Manchurian! It’s certainly a unique cider (none others that I’m aware of, presently) and has been very poplar in our tasting room in downtown Spokane. It’s certainly an assertive cider that showcases bright acidity and strong tannins – so much so that in describing it to first-time customers, I’ve taken to calling it a “cider port”, even though it’s not fortified with spirits like true Port is. It’s simply the juice of manchurian crabapples, fermented until the yeast we selected gave up at the 12.5% ABV mark. The juice had potential to hit 14% ABV – certainly the highest sugar content in any apple I’ve ever heard of or used. We age the finished cider around nine months, though not in oak (we’re experimenting with that approach now)….I’ve attached an image of the apples below (at right). As you might imagine, harvesting these tiny apples and sorting them into usable juice takes a LOT of work….Here’s hoping you enjoy it. Some sip it by itself as an aperitif, but I’d suggest you try it with a quality goat cheese, cheesecake dessert or creme brûlée – imagine there’s a world of other options, too. I hear Capitol Cider is using it in a mixed drink or two, as well.

Photo of the crabapples they use:

Rick also sent a great link to a blog article on the labels for this cider, from Advanced Labels Northwest (Seattle area) which has some great photos and cidery & cider info in addition to label/packaging info.

Cidery Description: Liberty Ciderworks (founded 2012) is in Spokane WA, where they also have a tasting room. Their website was surprisingly sparse besides the basics, but they are active on Facebook & Twitter. Facebook lists the following Liberty Ciderworks varieties as available by the bottle: English Style, New World Style, Turncoat Dry-Hop, Stonewall, Heirloom Series, McIntosh Single Varietal, Manchurian Single Varietal, Kingston Black Single Varietal, and Reserve Series. There are more varieties available on tap at their tasting room. They won several awards at this year’s GLINTCAP competition, including a Silver medal for this cider. Congrats!

Price: $14
Where Bought: Full Throttle Bottles in Georgetown (Seattle), who has a huge local craft cider selection
How Found: Browsing. I’ve had my eye on Liberty Ciderworks though, deciding which one to try first (I was lucky enough to have a few options…New World & English style at Total Wine, and a few at Full Throttle Bottles including this and one other Single Varietal). I chose this one as it looked to be their sweetest offering and I find the high ABV / port or dessert style ciders interesting. Oddly enough I like strong flavors and barrel aged ciders even though I don’t like aged spirits!

Where Drank: home

First Impression: Corked bottle (with attached cap for easy re-capping) with foil covering. Lovely bottle/label too! Amber orange hue, completely still, sweet inviting boozy smell.

Opinion: I find this on the sweeter side of semi-dry than semi-sweet. It definitely has some warmth, and reminds me of similar high ABV bold ciders I’ve liked such as Alpenfire Smoke, 2 Towns the Bad Apple, Sea Cider Prohibition, and especially, Tieton Wind (which is a 16% ABV Pommeau with apple brandy). I pick up some mild vanilla & caramel notes and find it rich & earthy with a bit of a bitter finish. Although I haven’t tried any other single varietals to compare with, I find this cider incredibly complex for one apple variety and no additives. It seems like it has some hints of apple brandy (but it doesn’t). To me it has an interesting thick mouthfeel which sticks around for awhile, which from my experience with the above mentioned ciders seems to occur with these high ABV ciders.

This cider definitely won’t be for everyone…oddly enough my husband thought it smelled “off” and tasted “terrible”, but he hasn’t enjoyed similar ciders like I have. I quite like this cider though! Its very different than what most folks would think of when they think of cider. I go for these sorts of ciders though, when I’m in the right mood. I agree it has an intense flavor. Its also impressive they didn’t need to add any sugar to get the crabapple juice to ferment to that high of an ABV; those are definitely some powerful apples!

I didn’t however completely take Liberty’s suggestion of having this more as a dessert cider, nor did I have any goat cheese, cheesecake, or creme brulee in the house (I wish!). I’d like to try pairings in the future so I’ll have to plan ahead better next time. I opened the bottle before dinner and sipped on it throughout the evening, which also did include dessert (meringues, which worked pretty well). I did this mostly as I wanted to at least try to finish the bottle as I wasn’t sure how it would taste on Day 2 or 3 (as I am drinking it all myself). I’ve found the taste of a cider changes as it is open, no matter how well you re-seal it (typically it becomes less intense). Even then, I couldn’t quite finish it off, so I will have a nice small serving later in the weekend.
Update: On Day 2 the flavor had changed slightly, a bit less bold and a bit more bitter.

Closing Notes: I enjoyed this cider. I imagine if my cider palate was more refined I could offer more descriptors and pairing suggestions, but I can overall say I’m glad I tried it and would recommend it if you think this sort of unique bold strong cider would fit your tastes. I hope Liberty Ciderworks can continue to expand so more folks can try their ciders! I imagine down the road I will try more of their ciders (I’m trying to teach myself to enjoy drier ciders). And, a big big thank you to co-founder Rick Hastings (the other co-founder is Austin Dickey) for the extra info. I think it was a great addition to this review. To be able to speak to a cidery founder for more detailed information is definitely an advantage of small craft cideries.

Have you tried anything from Liberty Ciderworks, or any single varietal or high ABV ciders? What did you think?

7 Things I Love About Hard Cider

July 16, 2015July 11, 2015 cidersays misc, views cider, hard cider, love

Hard cider…whats not to love? To me, it is the perfect refreshing alcoholic beverage. Here are some things I love about hard cider:

Alternative to Beer & Wine: I’ll admit I’ve never truly understood the appeal of beer as it tastes pretty horrible to me, and my taste in wine is very narrow (only sweeter varieties such as Moscato or sweet sparkling wine). Hard cider is a great alternative to beer & wine, and is becoming increasingly more available & popular. Hard cider is also more easily likable for most folks than beer or wine, which can be an acquired taste. At most bars & restaurants you can now typically find at least one variety of hard cider.

Something for Everyone: There are varieties to suit every taste, from dry to sweet, from mild to intense. Its not a “girly” drink. Its not only sweet or only dry. It is immensely diverse.

Uniqueness: So much can be done with hard cider. No two varieties taste the same. There are endless possibilities for flavors. It can be barrel aged. Cider is available from numerous countries around the world, and there is a seemingly endless number of varieties,

History: Hard cider is actually the most historic & traditional beverage in the U.S. It historically originated in Kazakhstan millennia ago. Cider was the drink of choice of early American settlers, who actually drank a watered down version of it instead of water due to potentially lethal bacteria. It was popular in the colonial era. Honeybees were first imported to America in the early 1600s to pollinate apple trees. Apples are actually a fairly sustainable crop, as an apple tree will continue to bear fruit for decades. Unfortunately cider went out of favor, but its current resurgence is awesome.

Supporting Local Businesses: I love to support local business, especially when they have a good product. Although I don’t exclusively buy local craft cider, it is a significant portion of my purchases. And while many may seem a bit expensive, for a local craft product, there can still be fairly affordable, more so than wine for example.

Its a great anytime beverage: At almost any time of year and any time of day, cider is a great option. It also pairs well with almost every type of food. I also enjoy a good cocktail, but there are plenty of times a hard cider is more appealing, such as with lunch, when it would be a bit odd to order a martini!

Taste: But most importantly, it tastes good! The alcoholic kick is a nice bonus too. Folks should drink what they love and love what they drink.

Why do you love hard cider?

Celt Cidre Breton Traditionnel

July 15, 2015July 12, 2015 cidersays Celt, review Celt Cidre Breton Traditionnel, cider, Cidrerie Loïc Raison, French, hard cider

Here is a review of a French cider, Celt Cidre Breton Traditionnel:

Cider: Celt Cidre Breton Traditionnel
Cidery: Cidrerie Loïc Raison
Cidery Location: Domagné, France
ABV: 4.5%
How Supplied: single 11.2 oz (330ml) green glass bottle
Availability: unsure (imported by Eurobrew Inc. in Ashland MA)

Description: Cider has sparkled in Brittany since the Iron Age, when Gaul warriors roamed the ancient land named “Armor” or “Country-by-the-Sea.” They worshiped the sun, the moon and the stars and feared nothing but the sky falling on them. Celt cider is named after these proud and fearless warriors who lived in the six Celtic nations known as the “Celtic Crescent”: Brittany, Cornwall, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Isle of Man. This is a refreshing “demi sec” cider with a fruity flavor balanced by a crisp dry finish made from the finest apples in Brittany. Authentic and traditionally made hard cider imported from Brittany. 100% fermented apple cider not from concentrate.

Price: $2.50 for a single bottle
Where Bought: Whole Foods
How Found: Browsing. This was a random find. The unique bottle caught my eye as I hadn’t seen it before and have never tried French cider.
Where Drank: home

First Impression: Golden hue. Foamed upon opening the bottle and pouring it. Fairly highly carbonated (it appears CO2 was added per the ingredient list). Sweet crisp apple smell.

Opinion: I’d classify this on the sweeter side of semi-dry. It reminds me of the two English style ciders I’ve tried, Crispin Browns Lane and Aspall Dry Cider. For some reason these three ciders remind me of barrel aged ciders, which is probably a reason why I enjoy them. Of the three I’d probably give a slight edge to the Crispin Browns Lane. I find it very refreshing, with hints of caramel, honey, and vanilla. It has an effervescent mouth feel. It doesn’t however have much complexity and finishes quickly (sweeter start and drier finish). At only 4.5%, this is also a very easy to drink cider. I’m curious if I could find this in multi packs, as that would likely be more affordable. It appears that I can get Loic Raison Brut cider in a 750ml bottle at Total Wine, so I’ll have to see if that is the same thing, but at $10.50 that is actually more expensive. This cider makes me want to try more English & French ciders, as long as they are not too dry. Quite tasty!

Closing Notes: This cider is made from Breton apples and is described as a traditional French cider, described as Brut or demi sec (medium dry). I unfortunately don’t have any additional information on the cidery, as it was difficult to find anything online in English besides some Untappd & RateBeer reviews. Have you tried Celt Cidre Breton Traditionnel, or any other French ciders? What did you think?

Affording Craft Cider

July 14, 2015July 11, 2015 cidersays misc, views cider, craft cider, hard cider

As much as I love to support local craft cideries, there are two reasons I often buy commercial cider in addition to craft cider.

Sweetness: I tend towards liking sweeter cider. Most of the craft cider I’ve tried tends towards dry, which is admittedly traditional for hard cider. Luckily there are a few good local craft cidery options for sweeter cider, such as Spire Mountain and Schilling, which both offer affordable craft cider in multi-packs.

Cost: Its a bit spendy to only buy craft cider. Even though I typically only drink on the weekends, and don’t drink an excessive amount, its difficult to always justify spending $6-$20 for a bottle of cider when I could get a four or six pack which will last me the entire weekend for $7-$10. However, I love sampling new ciders, so I typically buy a mix of craft & commercial, which appeases both my taste buds and my wallet. Its a treat to pick up something new to try! I’m curious what everyone else thinks on this topic:

Neigel Vintners (NV) Half Past Prudent

July 13, 2015August 17, 2015 cidersays NV Cider, review cider, Half Past Prudent, hard cider, nv cider, pear

Here is a review of a perry from Nieigel Vintners (NV) Cider, Half Past Prudent.

Cider: Half Past Prudent
Cidery: Neigel Vintners (NV) Cider
Cidery Location: Wenatchee, WA
ABV: 5.5%
How Supplied: four pack of 250ml metal canisters
Availability: very limited, likely only in WA (they started up in Feb 2014)

Description: This was our first cider. We originally created it to be a light cider we could drink all summer long. Wanting to eschew the sugary summer beer alternatives, we created this for its simplicity. The name comes from our first trial runs before the idea of a company was even formed. Our 1902 press would produce this cider. We would crank the press until we heard it start to creak and pop…a prudent place to end the press. We would then crank it around one more half turn. We take our virtues with a grain of salt.

Price: $2.75 for a single bottle (the store split up the 4 pack)
Where Bought: Full Throttle Bottles in Georgetown (Seattle)
How Found: Browsing, noticing it after having tried their Pear Essentials variety
Where Drank: home

First Impression: This cider is fairly pale, slightly cloudy with a small amount of sediment. I pick up a citrus and mild pear scent. My first taste is tart and fairly dry.

Opinion: This is an interesting perry; It breaks the mold of the fairly sweet varieties that are more common and that I’ve tried previously (Crispin Pacific Pear, Fox Barrel Pacific Pear, Spire Mountain Pear, Woodchuck Pear, Wyder’s Dry Pear, and even NV Cider Pear Essentials). I think the main difference is that this is 100% fermented pear juice, no apple juice, and no back sweetening, which is what is typically offered. This is more semi-sweet than sweet. I don’t notice any carbonation. I pick up an earthy lemony green apple champagney taste. It is very smooth, but a bit too tart, dry, and even slightly bitter for my taste. I really like the idea of it though, as I often like a slightly earthy & champagney cider. I think it is mostly the tartness?

I first tried their perry at Snohomish on the Rocks, where I had Pear Essentials, which I prefer. So, I guess I am not a cider traditionalist, as I often like the added flavor & sweetness from back sweetening done right (I don’t like ciders that tend towards syrupy). If you are looking for a sweet but not too sweet very pear-like perry, than I’d recommend Pear Essentials. Hopefully I can find that variety again. I bought a large clear glass bottle of their Pear Essentials variety at the event, but this time their product was sold in a small metal canister (less than 9 oz). Their newer packaging is pretty sweet looking, where the canister is more bottle-shaped…likely very eye catching in the sea of bottles & cans on the shelves!

Closing Notes: NV Cider offers five types of perry: Half Past Prudent, Cider Baron, Pear Essentials, Pearfect Pie, and Forgotten Virtue. Here is an interesting profile piece on NV Cider in Cider Craft Magazine. Have you tried any perry from NV Cider? What did you think?

Hard Cider News Edition 1

July 12, 2015July 12, 2015 cidersays news Angry Orchard, awards, best cider, chemistry, cider, cider bars, cider styles, hard cider, infographic, links, news, wine, Woodchuck

Here are some recent hard cider news/articles/links I found interesting:

Cider Bars are Taking Root (New York Times)
Cider bars, what to expect, who frequents them

How Not Wanting to Waste Apples Led to a Successful Hard Cider Business (Yahoo News)
Profile on Reverend Nat’s Cider (Nat West)

Woodchuck Hard Cider Launches First US Advertising Campaign (PR News Wire)
Titled “Why Woodchuck”, it showcases Woodchuck as America’s original & authentic hard cidery.

Can a Brit Find Good Cider in America? (BBC News)
Profiles some of the (major) differences between British and U.S. cider and the current U.S. cider boom.

Ciders give America’s Favorite Fruits a Chance to Sparkle (Wisconsin Gazette)
Includes profiles on several U.S. cideries.

Angry Orchard Breaks Ground on Cidery in Walden (Westfair Communications)
Plans to make the new facility in New York their home for cider research, with a cidery for small batch experimentation.

Drink This Now: Hard Cider That is as Sophisticated as Wine (Bloomberg)
Cider growth, cider bars, and five modern American cider recommendations

Freshly Pressed: Winners of the Pacific Northwest Cider Awards Announced (Northwest Cider)
42 winners from 140 entries. As special congrats to one of my favorites, Spire Mountain, for going 3/3.

Taste Test: 20 of America’s Best Artisinal (Alcoholic) Ciders (Eater)
Recommendations by category/dryness. Includes one of my favorites, Rev Nat’s Revival (although unlike most of Rev Nat’s varieties I don’t pick up any similarities to beer). Several other PNW cideries were also included: Traditions Ciderworks, 2 Towns, and Snowdrift.

Cider Styles Primer (North American Brewers Association)
Discussion of various cider styles, including draft, Farmhouse, New England, French, English, Perry, and Specialty.

The Chemistry of Cider (Compound Chem)
An interesting infographic about the chemistry of fermenting hard cider, including acids, tannins, aromas, and sweeteners.

Cider Says Weekly Preview

July 12, 2015July 12, 2015 cidersays preview cider, craft cider, hard cider, nv cider, tap

What posts to expect in the upcoming week at Cider Says:

Sunday: 8 Reasons Cider on Tap May Taste Better
Monday: Neigel Vintners (NV) Cider Half Past Prudent Review
Tuesday: Affording Craft Cider
Wednesday: Celt Cidre Breton Traditional Review
Thursday: 7 Things I Love About Hard Cider
Friday/Saturday: Mystery Cider Review

Stay tuned, and remember to follow by e-mail (sidebar on right, or at bottom of page on mobile devices) or follow on WordPress (top left bar) to be notified of new posts here at Cider Says. Have a great week!

8 Reasons Why Cider on Tap May Taste Better

July 12, 2015July 12, 2015 cidersays cider education, views beer, bottle, can, cider, draft, draught, hard cider, keg, tap

My experience of cider on tap (or keg or draft or draught or whatever you want to call it) is unfortunately limited. However, almost every time I’ve thought it tasted better on tap than from its bottled/canned cousin. I have noticed this with Spire Mountain Dark & Dry, Seattle Cider Semi Sweet, NV Cider Pear Essentials, and Reverend Nat’s Revival, which are all ciders I’ve had both bottled/canned and on tap. Some I had bottled/canned first, and others I bought it after trying it on tap.

I thought I’d explore this query. Most of the available research is from beer, but I believe much of it can be applicable to cider. Here are a few hypotheses from my research as to why cider on tap may taste better:

UV Light Exposure
Aluminum blocks out light better than glass. Sunlight exposure can effect the taste of the product. Clear & green glass lets in more light than brown glass, which is why many bottled beers & ciders are in brown instead of clear glass. Therefore canned or kegged cider is typically exposed to less light in its shelf life than bottled. I’ve noticed a number of craft cideries in my area use cans either predominantly or exclusively, which surprises me as canned beers are often perceived as “cheap”. I had assumed it was a cost issue (both for their assembly line & shipping), but it appears there may be much more to it. I’m also surprised how many ciders I’ve seen in clear glass bottles, so I wonder if cider actually isn’t as prone to the detriments of UV exposure as beer.

Storage Temperature
Kegs are often treated better than cases of cider bottles/cans, with less temperature variation. Cold storage is best as it slows down the oxidation process of the beverage, causing it to taste “fresher” for longer. A cider sitting on the shelf at room temperature in a store for a long period of time may not taste as “fresh”.

Drinking Temperature
An alcoholic beverage tastes different based on serving temperature. Certain ciders are better at different temperatures, and cold isn’t always best. Cider on tap may be served colder or warmer than from your fridge at home.

Time
Kegs rarely sit long term. Especially with specialty and/or expensive ciders, inventory may sit awhile in the store (and again once we get it home). Time can add oxidative flavors, which have the product taste less “fresh”. Higher turnover equals fresher cider.

Carbonation
Carbonation levels may vary based on if the product is bottled of kegged. Brewers often add less carbonation for draft beer. Higher carbonation forces more flavor into your tongue, which some folks find overwhelming. This is one of the reasons why a cider can taste different when drinking out of a bottle/can vs. pouring it into a glass, as pouring it releases some of the carbonation. I find I like richer or barrel aged ciders better from a glass, but some of the sweet & fruity ciders taste just fine from the bottle.

Pasteurization
Draft beer typically isn’t pasteurized, when bottled beer is. Bottled beer has to undergo pasteurization, heating it to kill off any bacteria that may grow between bottling and consumption. However, pasteurization can also compromise the taste, and some of the aromatic ingredients can be filtered out. Keg beer does not require pasteurization and is typically kept cold up until it is poured, so more flavor may be retained. I’m curious if the same is true for cider. I’ve read that commercial hard cider is pasteurized to remove yeast & apple particulates and retain carbonation, but I wonder if that is done 100% of the time. For craft & homebrew cider, it seems less likely.

Pouring into Glass Effect
Having the cider poured into a glass can open up the aroma quite a bit, and smell is of course tied into taste. This is one of the reasons why drinking a bottled/canned cider out of the bottle/can can taste different than out of a glass.

Placebo/Social/Cost Effect
Drinking during a night on the town is more exciting than at home. It also costs more (and when we pay more, we expect more). Plus, its exciting to find one of your favorite ciders on tap (too often they don’t have cider, or only Angry Orchard). All of this may add up to have us perceive that the product tastes better when it really doesn’t, as we expect it.

But its also possible the opposite could happen…
A product on tap could actually end up tasting worse than bottled/canned if the tap lines are not maintained properly (bacteria…ick!), if it is served or stored at an improper temperature, if the keg has been sitting around a long time and/or not stored cold, etc. You are likely better off ordering cider on tap at a place which sells a lot of it.

The freshest place to get cider is straight from the cidery itself (a growler). I imagine its likely that the preference for bottled/canned vs. tap may come down to personal taste as well. So, what do you think?

Seattle International Beerfest 2015 Trip Report

July 11, 2015November 28, 2015 cidersays Anthem, Aspall, Crispin, event, local, Rev Nat's, review, Samuel Smith's, Wyder's aspall, beer, beerfest, cider, Crispin, reverend nat's, Sam Smith's, seattle, trip report, washington, weekend, Wyder's

What a lovely day to be outside drinking cider in Seattle! Luckily we had some cloud cover and it cooled off from the high 80s we’ve had of late to the low 70s.

Although this was obviously a beer event, they had 10 cider choices out of the approximately 200 selections. This was a three day event and we thankfully had the foresight to get there not too long after they opened at noon on the first day (Friday). Yay for an excuse to take off work! As the day went on it got only more crowded, and I can only expect the same for the rest of the weekend.

Fisher Plaza in Seattle Center near the International Fountain was a great venue choice. The event was mostly outside on the lawn, but there was also an inside portion. Inside even had real restrooms (although there were also port a potties outside). Sadly they did not allow outside beverages, even sealed bottles of water, so we dumped them and eventually found the water bottle fill station by the restrooms (otherwise it was $1 or $2 from a food vendor).

They housed the bottled selections inside and all the taps outside. Most taps were coolers with two taps per cooler. There was some seating & shade thankfully, so the blanket I brought wasn’t necessary (although it would be when they were busy). There were numbered Tables with four selections per Table, and the event program listed all the beer/cider details and location. This was very very well organized, especially compared to many tasting events I’ve been to. I imagine Saturday afternoon here will be a zoo though!

This is a dog friendly event and we saw many many dogs. They even had water bowls out for them, which I’m sure was appreciated. There were also games to check out, which appeared to also be appreciated. We saw lots of people just hanging out listening to the live music. Others were more obviously beer aficionados. There was even a smoking tent which kept the smell contained, although the cigar area at the top of the hill allowed cigar smoke to waft down a bit.

before the crowds…

This event was staffed by volunteers, who gave up three hours of their time to serve beer & cider in exchange for a free t-shirt and entry to the event. Tastes of beer & cider (4oz) cost between 1 and 7 tickets each, depending on the product cost, with a ticket worth $1. Most selections were 2-3 tickets, but there were plenty of 1 ticket and 4-7 ticket selections. They also offered some pints for 3 tickets, including Crispin Blackberry Pear. I would have loved to have the brewers and cider makers at this event, but alas it was focused more on quantity and supposedly international & rare finds, than connecting drinkers with makers.

Lots of yummy food choices, although I was really craving a soft pretzel or pizza or something. BBQ, gyros, burgers, burritos, grilled cheese, hot dogs, etc. I ended up with a hot dog while my two drinking companions (hubby & friend) had Gyros. We later snacked on some kettle corn and even a weird buckwheat pancake with butter & sugar confection (Miri’s Poffers). There were also a few non-food vendors, everything from engraved growlers to beer themed t-shirts to beef jerky.

And now, on to the cider tasting notes…I ended up trying six ciders, four of which I hadn’t tried before.

(1) Aspall Dry Cider (bottle, 6.8%, from England, 3 tickets). Dry English draft style cider. This was the surprising winner of the day! I would call it semi-dry. Very crisp & smooth with a traditional English cider taste. I found it to be pretty similar to Crispin Browns Lane. I plan to try another selection of theirs which is available near me (the only one), Aspall Blush cider.

(2) Reverend Nat’s Hopland #5 / Envy (draft, 10.2%, from OR, 2 tickets). Intensely hopped cider with 11 hops varieties. I didn’t expect to like this as I don’t like hops, but thought I might as well try it. It has an unfiltered look to it, a bit orange and hazy. Very very hoppy, both smell & taste! It was also a bit boozy, which is to be expected at over 10%. I really couldn’t pick up anything in this besides hops. My companions tried it and couldn’t even taste that it was cider. This is definitely a beer drinker’s cider. Unfortunately after a couple sips it got dumped out, as it wasn’t even drinkable for my two beer loving companions.

(3) Wyder’s Reposado Pear (draft, 6.9%, from VT, 1 ticket). Tequila barrel aged pear cider. I’ve had this at home a number of times and was curious if it would taste any different on tap than bottled. Surprisingly, not. If anything I didn’t like it as much on tap as it seemed to have less carbonation. For me this cider starts off with pear and finishes with tequila. Its smooth, and sweet to semi-sweet. I think its quite tasty.

(4) Samuel Smith’s Organic Cider (bottle, 5%, from England, 2 tickets). This was pretty unremarkable for me. It had a definite sweet apple scent, but tasted semi-dry. It had a very quick finish to it and was overall quite plain. I think there is much better cider to be had for the cost.

(5) Anthem “Raz & Boyz” (draft, unknown ABV but I’d guess 5-6%, from OR, 2 tickets). This was Wandering Angus’ mystery cider selection, from their Anthem line. I really don’t have any info on it, as it wasn’t in the event program and it appears to be brand new (no information even online). I wouldn’t be surprised if it is a new selection they released for the first time for the International Beerfest for Portland & Seattle, as they are from OR. All I could go off of was the name they scrawled on the small white board lol, so this likely isn’t even the cider’s real name. Very very tart! Semi-dry to dry. Brilliant red color. I only picked up raspberry, no boysenberry. It was more palatable once it opened up a bit by the end of the tasting glass. One of my companions thought it would be much better as a beer mixer than on its own, as it was just too dry & tart. I had fun watching people take their first sip after getting a glass of it, as most scrunched up their face!

(6) Crispin Blackberry Pear (draft, 5%, from CA, 3 tickets for a full pint). Pear cider with blackberry. This was something else I’ve had at home but was curious if it was any different on tap (and I was out of new ciders to try). This is a sweet fairly straight forward blackberry & pear cider. Smooth, easy to drink, and slightly tart. This appeared to be a very popular selection, and I saw more folks with this in their pint glass than beer! It was actually a good deal too for $3 a pint as this cider runs about $9 for a four pack of 12oz bottles. Plus it really hit the spot to finish out the day.

Sorry I don’t have photos of the draft ciders, but they unfortunately didn’t have info sheets nor was there a surface to take a photo on…

Overall, I highly recommend this Seattle-area tasting event. It’ll be a crowd pleaser for beer & cider lovers alike. It was unfortunately a bit spendy though: $95 for advance purchase admission for three with 60 tickets, $15 for parking, and food & souvenirs. Still a great way to spend the day though. We ended up getting one pack of 40 tickets for one person and two packs of 10 tickets each for two people, which worked out well to share. Although you can buy extra tickets, the “Big Deal” as they called it (advance purchase only) essentially gave you 10 free tickets, and having the tickets in advance encouraged us to go big and try some of the more expensive stuff (vs. having to shell out extra money for single tickets).

My best advice is to arrive Friday afternoon when they open at noon, as around 4pm the crowds really picked up. Other advantages of arriving Friday are that you have in & out privileges (just need your wristband & tasting glass), and they may run out of some selections. Looking forward to next year!

Schilling Cider House Cider Education Video Series

July 10, 2015July 12, 2015 cidersays cider education acidity, brix, cider, cider education, cider tasting, hard cider, Schilling, seattle, tannins, video

Here is an awesome series of five short cider education videos by the Schilling Cider House, in Fremont (Seattle) WA. As an added bonus, they discuss a number of local craft cider selections.

Schilling Cider Episode 1 – Intro to Cider Tasting 101
Discusses appearance, aroma, cider flavors, etc.

Schilling Cider Episode 2 – Brix & Acidity
Discusses how sweetness (Brix = sugar content in liquid…one degree Brix is 1 gram of sucrose in 100 grams of solution) and acidity affect the taste of a cider.

Schilling Cider Episode 3 – Testing Brix & Acidity
Discusses how Brix & acidity are measured, and their purpose of balancing taste in cider.

Schilling Cider Episode 4 – Tannins
Discusses what tannins are and their purpose of balancing taste in cider.

Schilling Cider Episode 5 – Cider Innovation
Discusses innovations in the craft cider world, such as Nitro taps, the Randall, and infusing flavors.

This is a great series of topics applicable to tasting cider, and explains some of the technical aspects of the taste of a cider. As a side note, I would love to see more cideries put the Brix of their cider on the package as it would give the educated consumer a much better idea of whether the cider’s sweetness will be to their liking. I’ve not found the wine descriptors of dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet, sweet, etc, to be all too accurate or consistent.

So, what did you think?

Anthem Cider

July 9, 2015August 22, 2015 cidersays Anthem, review anthem, Anthem Cider, apple, apple cider, cider, cider review, craft cider, hard apple cider, hard cider, hard cider review, review, Wandering Aengus

Here is a review of Anthem’s flagship / original hard apple cider:

Cider: Anthem Cider
Cidery: Anthem (by Wandering Aengus Ciderworks)
Cidery Location: Salem, OR
ABV: 5.5%
How Supplied: four pack of 12 oz bottles (or a single 22oz bottle, or apparently just recently a six pack of 12 oz cans)
Availability: year round (since 2010); widely available in OR, WA, & CA, and less so in ID, MT, MI, UT, IL, NM, NJ, TX, ID, TN, PA, VA, & WA D.C.

Description: Anthem Cider offers the tart acidity of the apple’s natural malic acid with a clean fruit forward finish. Anthem Cider is the foundation for all the Anthems. Semi-Dry. Medium Tart. We only use fresh pressed apples and other fruits, herbs sourced from the Pacific Northwest of known varieties – they are listed on every bottle and keg. To make great real cider, the varieties of apples, fruit additions and herbs matter. As does where the ingredients are grown and how far removed they are from their original form (degrees separated through processing from the farm to the bottle). The fresh pressed apples we use provide all the sugars for fermentation and the malic acid (source of the tartness). Any and all residual sweetness in Anthem is provided by the apples we started with or the fruits we finish with. The result is a line up of real ciders made the way you expect; apples pressed and fermented.
Cidermaker’s Description of Anthem vs. Wandering Aengus: Wandering Aengus Ciders are made from heirloom cider apple varieties that have traditionally been used over the centuries for ciders in French, England and pre-prohibition America. We grow these rare heirloom apples ourselves in Salem and have a handful of growers around Oregon that grow for us. These heirloom apples are pressed only once a year. The apples for Anthem are pressed and fermented year round from the common apple varieties that are grown on a large scale in Washington and Oregon. Anthem Cider is also finished with fresh pressed juices of other fruits or hops while Wandering Aengus Ciders are not blended with other fruits.

Price: $8.99 / four pack (although I bought a single bottle for about $3)
Where Bought: Total Wine
How Found: Browsing, wondering why I hadn’t tried this previously
Where Drank: home

Opinion: My first impression is this cider’s dry plain apple scent. My nose did not deceive me this time. Anthem Cider is described as a semi-dry cider, and I would mostly agree…I’d put it smack between semi-dry and semi-sweet, which may appear to a lot of folks as there isn’t much available in this sweetness range. The flavor was a bit “blah” for my tastes…it doesn’t have much complexity going for it. Even if it has been slightly sweeter (as my tastes tend that way), I still don’t think I would have been impressed. The most similar cider I’ve sampled is Seattle Cider Semi-Sweet, which has a similar sweetness and flavor. However, I think I’d have to give Seattle Cider the edge in the comparison, as it is a bit more clean & refreshing. I remember having the Seattle Cider on tap with some fish & chips awhile back and it was tasty, but drier and more plain of a flavor than I prefer. Overall, I found Anthem Cider to be fine, but not impressive.

Closing Notes: Anthem also offers pear, cherry, and hops varieties. I was surprised to find that most Anthem Cider reviews online are of their Hops variety. Note that each Anthem batch is slightly different based on what apple varieties they used (based on availability due to the time of the year), and their website will even tell you what is in a certain batch. I sampled batch 127, which was a blend of red delicious, gala, granny smith, pink lady, jonagold, & opal apples. Their approach seems unique, as most other cideries will name a cider different if there is a significant variation such as this (or clearly note a vintage).

Have you tried any Anthem ciders? What did you think?

Hard Cider Blogs & Websites I Enjoy

July 8, 2015July 12, 2015 cidersays cider links blog, cider, craft cider, hard cider, links, news, reviews, website

Here are some great blogs & websites about hard cider which I enjoy:

Hard Cider News – A monthly newsletter which includes new cider releases, cider maker interviews, news, and more.

Bad Rider Reviews – A cider & beer review blog. The cider reviewer Phoebe is also from the PNW.

Along Came a Cider – A more technical but enjoyable cider blog which includes reviews, trip reports, and more. The author Meredith lives in New York.

Cider Sage – A cider blog which includes reviews, tutorials, trip reports, and more. The author Dan lives in Colorado.

The Cider Journal – A more technical cider blog with reviews, news, events, and views. They review a number of unique & rare ciders.

Cider Tasting 101 – An introductory cider tasting guide by Tilted Shed Ciderworks which includes tasting tips & descriptors.

Northwest Cider Association – Northwest cider events, news, recipes/pairings, and more.

Cidercraft Magazine – Online features of the biannual print magazine: Cider 101, feature stories, features, recipes, reviews, and cider directory.

cidery websites – The website for a cidery can have some great additional information on their cider varieties and more.

There are some other great blogs I didn’t include as they don’t have current updates.
Have any recommendations of your own?

Atlas Hard Apple Cider

July 7, 2015July 12, 2015 cidersays Avid (prev. Atlas), review apple, apple cider, atlas, cider, cider review, hard apple cider, hard cider, hard cider review, oregon, review

Here is the first cider I have tried from Atlas Cider Co,, their flagship hard apple cider:

Cider: Hard Apple Cider
Cidery: Atlas Cider Co.
Cidery Location: Bend, OR
ABV: 5.8%
How Supplied: clear 22oz glass bottle
Availability: year round, but it appears to only be distributed in OR, WA, & ID

Description: Our flagship apple cider is a celebration of the Northwest. The fruit forward apple aroma and taste come from a tailored blend that perfectly balances the sweetness, tartness, and dryness of the fruit. A clean finish from the use of all fresh regional juices reminds us that this is an authentic hard cider. Enjoy this natural, semi-sweet, and bold cider from Bend, Oregon that simply brings out the best of the Northwest.

Price: $6.50
Where Bought: Full Throttle Bottles in Georgetown (Seattle)
How Found: Browsing
Where Drank: home

Opinion: My first impression is the dry smell. It is pale and bubbles very little upon pouring. Upon tasting, the flavor reminds me of sweet sparkling wine, with a hint of pear & honey. There is an effervescence feel, although it is not highly sparkling. I was surprised how well my nose deceived me into thinking it would be dry, but it is not; I would call it semi-sweet. This cider is very smooth and well balanced. I would not however describe the flavor as simple, which can often happen with plain ciders. This cider is easy to drink and tasty. I snacked on some cheese & crackers while drinking it, which was a nice combination. This is a refreshing cider for any time of year, but for summer especially it is nice.

Atlas was started in 2013 by a husband & wife duo. They also offer Pomegranate-Cherry, Apricot, and Blackberry varieties.

Have you tried any ciders from Atlas? What did you think?

Finding Good Hard Cider While Out on the Town

July 6, 2015July 12, 2015 cidersays cider links, local apple, apple cider, bar, bellevue, cider, hard apple cider, hard cider, lynnwood, redmond, restaurant, seattle

Do you have a tough time finding a good selection of hard cider while out on the town at restaurants, bars, and events? Even in the Seattle area, I often do. Many chain places only carry Angry Orchard Crisp Apple. I wish more places at least offered Woodchuck. Here are a few times I’ve been lucky enough to find a good cider selection.

Tipsy Cow Burger Bar, in Redmond. They have two cider taps, which had d’s Wicked Baked Apple (from Kennewick WA) and Spire Mountain Dark & Dry (from Olympia WA) last time I was there. I chose one of my favorites, Spire Dark & Dry, which was even better on tap than bottled. Plus, their food is awesome, and I even eat veggie burgers.

Tavern Hall, in Bellevue. They have two cider taps, which had Seattle Cider Semi-Dry (from Seattle) and Rev Nat’s Revival (from Portland OR) last time I was there. I chose one of my favorites, Rev Nat’s Revival, which was also better on tap then bottled. This is a tropical fruit flavored cider, with which I pick up a lot of pineapple & mango. This place has a great atmosphere. Hubby and I ended up hanging out at the bar for a few hours chatting up the bartender. Didn’t try any food, but their menu looks awesome.

Big E Ales, in Lynnwood. This is a beer brewery which offers a couple bottled cider selections, Sonoma The Anvil (from Healdsburg CA) and Anthem Pear (from Salem OR) last time I was there. I chose the Sonoma Anvil, their bourbon flavored variety, which I had before but had forgot how good it was. It was a fun atmosphere and they have a yummy bar food menu. I was surprised how busy it is despite their odd location in a warehouse district, but it appears they have a loyal following.

Black Raven Brewery, in Redmond. This is a beer brewery which offers a few Finn River bottled cider selections (from Chimacum WA). I chose the Black Currant, which I hadn’t tried before. It was very fruity & tasty, almost tasted “grapey” to me (in a good way), and was a good mix of dry & sweet. Black currant is an unusual cider flavor, but they did it well. They have a fun atmosphere. There is often a food truck, or else many restaurants will deliver here.

Tap House Grill, in Bellevue (also has a Seattle location). This restaurant has 6 cider taps, ranging from ordinary to local. I tried Wandering Angus Wickson (from from Salem OR) when I was here, which was way too dry for me. Bad on me for choosing something at random (because I hadn’t heard of it) instead of looking them up or even just walking up to the bar, after the waitress had no clue about their cider selections. They have ok food. We mainly went here due to the location, within walking distance of everything in downtown.

Capitol Cider, in Capitol Hill. This cider bar and gluten free restaurant has 20 cider taps, plus 250+ selections in their bottle shop. I went here quite awhile ago so I’m not sure how valid my info is anymore. However, I was surprisingly disappointed. We went at an odd time, Sunday at noon, so the place was pretty empty. I was expecting to get lunch, but they had a brunch menu, which didn’t have any interesting sounding lunch selections, so we ordered breakfast with our cider! At the time I went most of the selections on tap were really dry, and after the first couple tastes I coaxed out of the bar staff I just picked one, which also was too dry for my liking (don’t even remember what it is, so it must have not been very memorable).
The waitress didn’t seem to interested in finding something I’d like. Their current tap selections look more well-balanced. I was excited for their bottle shop after reading about it online, but it turned out to be a list to choose from which they would pull the bottles for you. Hopefully that has changed, as half the fun is looking at & reading the labels. I ended up spending a bunch of time on my phone to make an educated selection. Hoping to give it another shot sometime, but in general this place just isn’t our scene.

Schilling Cider House, in Fremont. I haven’t been here yet, but it is at the top of my to do list! Yes, I have my priorities straight. Cider first, then everything else. They have 32 cider taps, 250+ selections in their bottle shop, and food available from local restaurants which deliver. Their tap list is awesome, and includes a number of Schilling’s own varieties and many more, including some novelty/wacky stuff. They have a few of their own ciders on tap which they don’t offer anywhere else, such as their Berry cider.

How have you fared finding good hard cider while out on the town in your area?

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